Sea ice production and transport are key processes of the Okhotsk–
Pacific system. Kashiwase et al. (2014) developed a thin-ice
thickness algorithm using Special Sensor Microwave/Imager
(SSM/I) data for the Okhotsk Sea, and then estimated ice production
over 21 years (1988–2008) from the SSM/I thickness data by
performing heat flux calculations. They clarify the long-term
variability of sea-ice production in the polynyas and present the
first observational evidence of a linkage between annual total ice